85 civil society groups issue joint statement in support of Ladakh statehood protests

Eighty-five civil society groups on Friday jointly issued a statement in support of the ongoing protests in Ladakh over the people’s demand for statehood for the four-year-old Union territory.

“We express solidarity with all those fasting in the frigid conditions of Ladakh, including Sonam Wangchuk and many others,” read the statement by the Vikalp Sangam General Assembly, which includes the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, the Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation and Greenpeace India among others.

On Wednesday, Ladakh’s Kargil town observed a half-day shutdown as locals took to the streets in solidarity with activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is 17 days into a 21-day hunger strike that is he observing in Leh amid sub-zero temperatures, to voice the demand for the statehood, reported The Hindu.

On Thursday, the Kargil Democratic Alliance announced that they were set to join the hunger strike led by Wangchuk. Wangchuk and other civil society leaders in Ladakh are also trying to press the Centre to implement the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution for Ladakh.

The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 (Administration of Scheduled Areas and Tribal Areas) of the Constitution of India guarantees certain protections for land and a nominal autonomy for citizens in designated tribal areas. In Ladakh, more than 97% of the population belong to...

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